The Dog Walker
by Pearls and Mascara
Summary: Percy Jackson needs a summer job. The Chase Family needs a dog walker. One can imagine what happens next.
1. Chapter 1

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

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Percy put the last of his belongings into the last of his duffle bags, finally finishing packing. With a sigh, Percy sat on his bare bed, waiting for his step-dad, Paul, to arrive to help him move out of his New York University dorm room, and ran a hand through his raven black hair, remembering that he forgot to brush it this morning. He looked around the empty space. His roommate had moved out about an hour ago, and the more Percy packed, the less the small room felt like the home it had been to him the past year. He'd miss this space, but he truly could not wait to see his parents, and, though he would never admit it, he was looking forward to seeing the cat again, too. Suddenly, there was a sharp knock.

"It's open!" Percy yelled to the visitor, picking up the first of his duffle bags to hand to who he assumed would be Paul. Instead, a girl with fiery red, untamable hair walked in.

"Oh, hey Rachel," Percy greeted the girl, setting down his duffle bag.

"You weren't planning to leave without saying goodbye, were you?" Rachel questioned, wrapping her arms around her boyfriend's neck. Percy smiled down at her.

"Of course not," he told her, giving her a quick peck on the lips. "I've just been so busy packing. I never realized how much crap I kept in here." Rachel scoffed.

"I could've told you that," she said, giving him one last peck. "I need to get going. My mom is waiting in the car. I just wanted to make sure we got our goodbye in. See you soon?"

"Absolutely," Percy assured her. Rachel lived only thirty minutes out of New York City, and Percy lived in Brooklyn, so the two planned to spend a lot of time together this summer. As Rachel left, a tall man with salt and pepper hair walked into Percy's dorm room. Percy grinned at his step-dad as Paul gave him a hug.

"I've missed you, son," Paul told Percy as he picked up a bag.

"Missed you too, Paul." The two men packed up Paul's small Prius and headed to their Brooklyn apartment.

"So was that Rachel?" Paul inquired as they began their drive off campus. Percy smiled at the mention of his girlfriend's name. He did not quite know what love felt like, but he was pretty sure that the way he felt about Rachel was close to it.

"Yeah, that was her. What do you think?" Percy replied, hoping Paul would approve.

"She's cute. You gotta be careful with those red heads, though. They can be trouble." Percy rolled his eyes at Paul's joke, albeit he laughed anyway.

"I really like her, Paul. And we're planning to spend a lot of time together, so I should probably get a job. Otherwise, I'll be broke in a week," Percy said laughing, though he was serious about running out of money.

"You know," Paul answered, "I walked dogs over the summer when I was your age. I got pretty good money for it, too."

"Really?" Percy asked, interested. "That sounds like a nice, easy job. How do I go about finding some dogs to walk?"

"I have a friend who has some dogs, actually. He'd probably pay you well. He's a well known professor and his wife's a lawyer."

"That sounds great. Do you think they'd hire me? Are they looking for a dog walker?"

"I can ask."

"Yeah, thanks Paul, that'd be great."

Paul pulled up to the brick apartment building and parked his Prius. Before Percy could even get out of the car, his mother was running out the front door of the building towards him. Percy stepped out of the car into his mothers waiting arms.

"Percy! I've missed you so much," Percy's mother rested her head against her son's chest as he wrapped his arms around her.

"I've missed you too, mom. I really have," Percy told her, chuckling at his mother's dramatic embrace.

"I can't get all these bags by myself!" Paul interrupted the reunion. "Here, can you get this one, Sally?" he asked his wife. Sally took the bag and began up to the apartment, Paul and Percy close behind her.

The apartment was small, but nice. It had that special quality that as soon as someone goes through the door, he or she feels at home, even if it is not his or her apartment. The floors were a beautifully worn, taupe wood, with walls painted to match. Right inside the front door was the kitchen with deep brown cabinets and light amber, marble countertops. The table placed against the wall was a beautiful mosaic placed on top of a turquoise rug, and the three chairs around the table did not quite match, but went together in a way that gave the room undeniable character. The vintage clock above the table read 4:30 in the afternoon, and the antique vase on the counter held blooming, bright yellow flowers.

As soon as Percy walked through the door, Milo, the cat, was jumping onto his broad shoulders.

"Hey bud!" Percy said to the cat, "I've missed you too!" Milo meowed as Percy pushed him off his shoulders, walking past the kitchen, into the living room. The living room continued the theme of mismatched yet complimenting furniture with a plush, ivory couch complimenting a dark, wooden love seat with lovely pearl, leather cushions, complimenting a similarly wooden arm chair with alabaster, handwoven cushions. The coffee table was a deep chocolate wood, offsetting the off-white television stand. The bookshelf placed against the back wall, behind the couch matched the wood of the coffee table, as did the arched windows and balcony door as they let in ample natural light. There were plants and succulents scattered about the room, giving the city apartment an earthy feel. Percy continued from the living room through the door to his room and dropped his bags.

"Dinner in an hour, Percy!" Sally called to her son as she saw him enter his room.

"Okay!" Percy called back, enjoying the sounds of home. Percy looked around his room. The blue of his walls, resembling the sea, the deep brown wood of his bookshelf, resembling drift wood, and the almost white wood of his bed and desk, resembling sand. He sat down on his blue stripped comforter and took a deep breath.

"Smells like home," he said to himself. As he waited for dinner, Percy reclined on his bed, bracing his head with his hands tucked behind his dark hair, and thought about Rachel. Her wild hair and bright, kelly green eyes. She was Percy's first real relationship. Sure, he'd been on dates before and had had a couple of girlfriends, but Rachel was the first that he thought may actually go somewhere. The only issue was that Percy just could not bring himself to fully trust her. Sure, he had never felt this way before, and he even thought he may be falling in love, but he could not bring himself to allow his heart to fall while he felt this ominous aura of distrust in the back of his mind every time he was around her. He pushed the thoughts away. _I'm sure it's nothing,_ he thought to himself.

"Percy, dinner!" Sally's voice brought Percy out of his thoughts and he picked himself up and went into the kitchen for dinner. Paul was sitting in his seat at the table, reading a story from the paper out loud as Sally fiddled with the food.

"Hey, Perce," he greeted Percy as Percy took his seat at the table.

"I hope you two are hungry," Sally said as she served them both heaping plates of spaghetti, green beans, and garlic bread. Percy's stomach growled as he took in the smells of the steaming plate of food, his first home cooked meal since Christmas vacation. Percy could faintly smell a cake in the oven, and he would bet anything that the cake was blue.

"So Percy, tell us everything that has happened since Christmas. How was your second semester? Were your classes good? Are the kids being nice to you? Oh! And you said you met a girl! What was her name, Paul? Rachel!" Sally fired questions at Percy, eager to catch up on her son's life. Percy and Paul both laughed at Sally's interrogation, and Percy took a bite of spaghetti before he began to answer her many questions.

"Classes are great, mom. I'm really excited for next year when I really get to start taking classes related to marine biology and not just basic courses that everyone has to take. And yes, of course the kids are being nice to me." Percy answered his mother with a sparkle in his eye, truly happy to answer any and all of her ridiculous questions.

"And what about Rachel?" Paul chimed in. Percy looked down at his plate, a slight blush on his cheeks.

"Oh," Sally said, clapping her hands, "I want to meet her."

"No, mom, not yet," Percy said with a laugh. "She truly is amazing, though. I've never felt like this before." Sally gave her son a knowing smile.

"And what about swimming? The coach is going to renew your scholarship, right?" Paul asked around a mouthful of green beans.

"Oh yeah," Percy replied, "we're going to be unstoppable next year." The family enjoyed themselves, catching up and simply enjoying being together. Once the spaghetti was eaten, the green beans gone, and the garlic bread disappeared, Sally brought the cake out of the oven.

"I knew it'd be blue," Percy said with a grin.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Sally said, "but before we eat it, it needs to cool so I can frost it." At this, a scowl found its way onto Percy's face.

"How long is that going to take?" Percy demanded, distress evident in his voice.

"Oh, maybe half an hour, forty-five minutes." Sally answered calmly. Percy's jaw was on the ground.

"I come home from my first year at college and this is what I get." Percy said in disbelief.

"I think you'll live," Paul retorted, taking the dishes to the sink and beginning to clean up. Percy got up to help, putting rinsed dishes into the dishwasher. By the time the kitchen was clean, the cake was frosted and ready to go. Percy helped himself to the largest slice, going into the living room to select a movie for the family to watch. He put the disc in as Sally and Paul walked in to join him.

"Oh no," Paul said, seeing the case to _Finding Nemo_ on the coffee table. Percy gave him a mischievous look and sat down in the armchair, eating his cake calmly. Paul did not put up anymore of a fight, and the three watched Percy's favorite movie in peace. By the time the film was over, Sally had fallen asleep, and Paul had taken her and himself into bed. Percy, however, watched until the very end before allowing himself to get into bed for the best night's sleep he has had in a long time.

The next morning, Percy woke up around 9:00, stretching his tired muscles. After taking a quick shower, Percy went into the kitchen for breakfast, finding Paul watching the news in the living room. When Percy opened his door, Paul muted the television.

"Good morning, Perce. Sleep well?" Paul greeted Percy.

"Good morning, yeah, I slept like a baby." Percy answered.

"So I have some good news: I spoke to my friend, Frederick Chase. Welcome to the dog walking business, son."

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 **Thanks so much for reading! Please share your thoughts with me! More to come soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

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"Annabeth!" Annabeth woke up to the sound of her step mother yelling her name. She rolled over and looked at the clock. 7:00 am. Annabeth sighed to herself. She just finished her senior year. Did she not deserve some peaceful sleep the summer before she has to go to college?

"Annabeth!" Her step mother, Susan, yelled once again.

"What!" Annabeth called back, annoyed.

"Don't take that tone with me," Susan scolded, opening Annabeth's door. "Frederick and I are taking the twins shopping for new soccer gear." Annabeth's younger half brothers, Bobby and Matthew, were something of a couple of soccer stars at their elementary school. "The new dog walker should be here in a couple of hours. You'll need to let him in and show him where the leashes are. Help him out a little too, especially with Charlie." Charlie, a chocolate lab, was the more rambunctious of their two dogs. Molly, a golden retriever, was older and much calmer.

"Yeah, okay," Annabeth replied to her step mother, burring her face in her pillow, her honey blonde curls splaying everywhere.

"Annabeth." Susan snapped. "I have already told you once today not to take that tone with me." Susan left Annabeth's room, and Annabeth heard her family leave the apartment. Sighing once again, she rolled over and drifted back to sleep.

Annabeth was awoken for the second time that morning by the sound of a loud knock and the barking that shortly followed. Annabeth groaned and rolled out of bed. She walked out of her room, into the apartment.

The apartment had a cool feel to it. Everything had its place, and everything was in its place. The deep chestnut wooden floors went well with the taupe paint on the walls, and the white wooden kitchen table and chairs matched perfectly with the cabinets and coordinated superbly with the taupe, granite countertops. The living room was adjacent to the kitchen in a large, open space. The white cloth sofa went perfectly with the coloring of the kitchen, and the glass coffee table gave the entire space a modern feel. Against two of the large, square, white windows, next to the matching balcony door, that covered the wall were two Louis XVI style armchairs, the dark wood matched perfectly with the floor, and the white cushions tied the chairs in with the rest of the space. The chest underneath the wall-mounted television across from the sofa was the perfect blend of dark and light wood, and the one plant in the room was a modern vase of faux orchids.

Annabeth walked to the front door, Molly and Charlie following closely behind. She opened the door and was immediately taken by the attractive man in front of her. His dark, raven hair and beautiful, sea-green eyes. His powerful stance and lean muscles that were obvious through his NYU tee shirt. His strong legs, and she could only imagine what was beneath his black athletic shorts.

Percy similarly took in the beauty in front of him. The girl who answered the door had lovely, blonde curls and striking, grey eyes. Her body was slender, her collar bones apparent under her thin tank top, and she was probably half of a foot shorter than he. She had slim calves, and Percy could see a large portion of her svelte thighs before her thin yoga shorts hid the rest from him. Percy kicked himself. _Stop checking her out, Rachel would kill you_.

"Hi, I'm Percy," he introduced himself, offering her his hand. Annabeth smiled.

"Annabeth," she replied, shaking his outstretched hand. Annabeth noted how strong his grip was. "You must be the dog walker?" Annabeth's statement turned into a question as she waited for confirmation.

"Yep, that's me. And who do we have here?" Percy motioned towards the dogs as Annabeth let him in the apartment, closing the front door.

"This is Charlie, and this is Molly," Annabeth introduced the two dogs respectively. "So the leashes are in here." Annabeth led Percy into the laundry room where the dogs' supplies were kept. Annabeth began to put a leash on Charlie, the rowdy dog, when Percy interrupted.

"Oh you don't need to do that: that's what I'm here for. I can handle it." Annabeth raised an eyebrow at him.

"Am I not putting the leash on well enough for you?" she inquired. She was just trying to help, after all, especially considering how excited Charlie gets when new people enter the apartment.

"What? That's not what I meant. Just let me do it." Percy argued.

"I got it." Annabeth insisted. Charlie barked, as if to agree with her. Percy rolled his eyes, annoyed at her stubbornness..

"Whatever," he dropped it, putting another leash on Molly. _This girl may be hot,_ he thought to himself, _but she sure is irritating. Good thing I have Rachel._ Leashes on and dogs excited, Percy left the apartment. Annabeth decided to eat some breakfast while musing about the dog walker. _He really is attractive_ , she thought as she poured herself a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. _But seems kinda arrogant,_ she thought as she poured milk over her cereal. _Whatever_ , she concluded as she sat down at the table and turned on the T. V. Susan did not allow eating on the couch. Annabeth found an interesting documentary about Ancient Egypt on the History channel and watched. When she finished her cereal, Annabeth moved to the couch to finish the documentary, and, once the show was over, cracked open a new book. Soon after she began, however, the door opened and Percy walked in with two tired dogs.

"Hey, can you help me here?" Percy asked, referring to removing the dogs' leashes. He was out of breath, and the dogs were not cooperating, preferring instead to wander around the apartment in opposite directions.

"Isn't that what you're here for?" Annabeth asked, not looking up from her book, resulting in her missing the glare Percy shot at her.

"Fine, I got it anyway." Percy answered, corralling the dogs and taking both leashes back to the laundry room. "I guess that's it then, have an amazing day," Percy said, somewhat sarcastically, as he left the apartment. Annabeth looked up as he left, getting a good look at the back of his athletic shorts. She shook her head at herself. _Not worth it,_ she thought.

Percy returned home to take a shower. He was meeting Rachel for dinner that night and did not want to smell like sweat and dogs. Milo meowed at him as he entered the door, smelling the dogs on him.

"Oh, be quiet," Percy said, picking the cat up and rubbing his back. He put the cat down and went into the shower.

Clean and smelling fresh, Percy put on khaki shorts, a blue Polo, and brown loafers, along with his deodorant and a mild cologne. He was not supposed to pick Rachel up for another three hours, but, excited to see her, Percy decided to go ahead early, hoping to surprise her. With pep in his step, Percy sauntered into the living room to ask Paul if he could take his car early.

"Hey Paul, I was wondering if I could go ahead and take the Prius to get Rachel," Percy worded his question as a statement in hopes of influencing Paul's decision.

"Sure, Percy. A little eager I see," Paul answered, not looking away from the World War II movie he was watching on the television.

"Nah, I just have nothing better to do," Percy replied in an attempt to sound nonchalant.

"Whatever you need to tell yourself, kid. Keys are on the kitchen table," Paul replied with a chuckle. Percy grabbed the keys and headed out with a grin. As he got in the car, Percy thought about calling Rachel to tell her he was early, but he really wanted to see the look on her face when he surprised her.

Percy pulled into the driveway of Rachel's house in the suburbs of New York City. The house was a modern, stucco mansion tucked deep behind a tree-filled front yard. Percy noticed a red Lamborghini and a black Mercedes also in the driveway as he got out of the Prius and followed the stone path to the front door. Percy was amazed at the sight of Rachel's home. He knew Rachel's father was wealthy, but he never imagined anything like this. Percy took a deep breath to control his excitement as he rang the doorbell, only an hour early after the drive and his chat with Paul. The front door opened to reveal a man who was slightly shorter than Percy with sandy, disheveled hair and sky blue eyes. He was in only his briefs, which looked as though they had been hastily pulled on. Percy swallowed the sick feeling in his stomach, telling himself the guy must be Rachel's brother. But he could not remember if she even had a brother.

"Who are you?" the man asked in an annoyed tone. Percy blinked, the man's bluntness catching him off guard.

"I'm here to pick up Rachel. I'm Percy," Percy extended his hand to Rachel's brother.

"Should that mean something to me?" the man snapped back, looking at Percy's outstretched hand with disgust, as if it may contain some type of disease.

"Babe, what's taking so long? You kinda left me hanging here!" Percy heard a third voice coming from the upper level of the huge house. Rachel's voice. Percy swallowed, the sick feeling creeping back up his stomach.

"What's going on here?" he demanded, anger evident in his voice. He saw Rachel come down the stairs, wrapping a bath robe around herself, behind the man with blond hair's shoulder.

"Percy?" she sounded surprised all right, but her expression was not what Percy had had in mind. "Shit," Percy heard her mumble under her breath. Her fiery hair was even more tousled than usual, and there was a thin layer of sweat coating her face.

"Rachel, what's going on?" Percy asked, trying not to let his hurt anger seep into his voice.

"Percy, you're early," Rachel said with a sheepish smile.

"Who the hell is this?" the man with sandy hair demanded, turning to Rachel. Rachel was speechless. She, caught by two men at the same time, looked like a deer in headlights

"I don't need to deal with this," Percy said, "we're obviously finished. Have a great summer, Rachel." Percy looked Rachel dead in the eye, masking his broken heart behind a look of steel, before he walked back down the stone path and got back into his car.

Annabeth sat down at the dinner table, looking out the large, sharp windows at the apartment's beautiful view of Central Park. Past the park she saw the towering New York City skyscrapers, the Empire State Building lording over them all in the distance. Annabeth could not wait for the coming school year. She would be studying architecture at Columbia University. Annabeth had graduated as Valedictorian of her senior class and taken the highest level courses her high school offered, doing everything she could to get accepted to the Ivy League school of her dreams, and her hard work had truly paid off.

Annabeth's thoughts were interrupted by her twin half brothers, Bobby and Matthew, running into the room and taking their seats at the table with a bang.

"Hey guys," Annabeth greeted them, resting her head on her hands and smiling.

"Hey!" the eight-year-olds answered in unison before continuing an argument about who was truly the superior super hero: Batman or Superman. Bobby was adamant that Batman was the ultimate hero, and Superman was subpar at best. Matthew, however, argued that Superman's superhuman abilities made him the obvious winner, and Batman was nothing more than a glorified bystander who happens to be in the right place at the right time.

"Boys, calm down," Susan interrupted, placing heaping plates of pork chop and corn on the cob in front of the twins. "Frederick! Dinner is being served!" She called to her husband.

"I'm coming, coming," Frederick called back, his voice growing louder as he walked into the room. Susan returned with plates for Frederick and Annabeth as Frederick took his seat at the table. Susan lastly made a plate for herself, and the family dinner commenced.

"Annabeth, how did it go with the dog walker? What was his name again?" Frederick addressed his daughter.

"Percy," Annabeth answered, "and it went fine. He seems capable."

"Just capable?" Susan asked, giving Charlie a piece of her pork chop. "We want only the best for our pups, you know," she said to Frederick.

"I'm sure he'll do fine," Frederick assured her, "did the dogs seem to take to him, Annabeth?"

"Yeah, I think they enjoyed themselves," she answered while feeding Molly, who, upon seeing Charlie get a treat and not herself, was quite distressed.

"Don't give her too much, Annabeth," Susan scolded. Annabeth locked eyes with her but did not offer a response.

"Annabeth, guess what all we got today!" Matthew was eager to tell his sister all about their Soccer Shopping Extravaganza.

"Um…" Annabeth pretended to think, taking a bite of pork chop. "A tutu? Maybe some hair bows?" She asked with a twinkle in her sterling, grey, eyes.

"You're crazy!" Bobby told her with a laugh.

"We both got brand new cleats! You should see them, Annabeth, they're so cool!" Matthew exclaimed, excitement evident in his voice.

"That's not all, either," Bobby chimed in, "we got these new balls that are absolutely awesome! Will you play with us in the park tomorrow?"

"Sure, buddy," Annabeth answered. She was not the best at soccer, but it was fun anyway whenever she played with her little brothers.

"Just don't take your new cleats out tomorrow," Susan warned, "you don't want to get them dirty before the season even starts."

"And don't leave until Percy gets here," Frederick instructed, "Susan and I will both be at work tomorrow, so you need to be here to let him in. You can all walk to the park together! I'd like for you kids to get to know the guy we entrust our dogs to." Frederick said as he pat Charlie on the head. He seemed genuinely happy at the thought of Annabeth and the twins getting to know Percy better. Sometimes Annabeth felt like her parents loved the dogs more than they loved her, especially Susan.

"Is he going to be here everyday, Dad?" Annabeth asked, hoping not. She did not want to deal with his arrogance everyday for the rest of the summer.

"Nine A.M., every morning," Frederick said with a nod. Annabeth sighed, taking her empty plate to the sink. The twins followed suit, followed by Susan and Frederick. Annabeth tucked herself into bed, looking forward to spending time with her brothers the next day.

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 **Thanks so much for continuing to read! Please let me know what you think!**


	3. Chapter 3

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

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Percy woke to the sound of his alarm. Time to go walk the dogs. Percy rolled over, turned off his alarm, and went back to sleep. The whole purpose of getting a job was to have money to spend with Rachel, and that obviously was not going to happen anymore.

"Percy! Get up, you're going to be late!" Paul's voice woke Percy for the second time that morning.

"I'm not going!" Percy called back to him. Paul opened Percy's door and poked his head in.

"Excuse me?" Paul asked, wondering what was going through Percy's head.

"I don't need the money anymore. Rachel cheated, remember?" Percy pulled his covers over his head with a groan. Paul walked into the room and sat down on Percy's blue, stripped comforter.

"Percy," he said, "I know it's tough when something like this happens, but you can't just quit your job and pretend the rest of the world doesn't exist. Rachel doesn't define you. You made a commitment, son, and you need to honor that. Now get up." Paul gave Percy a pat on the shoulder as he got up and left the room.

Percy rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and forced himself out of bed. He pulled a gray Mickey Mouse tee shirt on over his bare chest and black Under Armour shorts over his plaid boxers. Percy looked at his face in his bathroom mirror. He had not cried at all since he caught Rachel the day before. Percy rubbed his eyes, willing himself to cry, but he just could not make the tears come. _Why can't I cry?_ Percy thought to himself. He'd cried plenty of times before: watching his first step father, Gabe Ugliano, beat his mother; when his friend Charles was killed in a boating accident; he even teared up at Sally and Paul's wedding. Why could he not cry now? A breakup with a girl he thought he was falling in love with should make the cut, right? _Maybe I didn't like her as much as a thought I did._

Shaking his head, Percy brushed his teeth, put on deodorant, and left the apartment, deciding to get something to eat on the way.

Percy walked into a local coffee shop, the smell overwhelming him. The coffee shop had wood paneling on the walls, and there were small, wooden tables scattered throughout. As he stepped up to the register, the cashier smiled at him. She had brown hair pulled into a pony tail, and her eyes matched the shade of her hair almost perfectly. Percy smiled back at her, thinking she was kinda cute.

"I'll have a grande iced coffee, black, and a chocolate chip muffin," Percy ordered, taking out his cash.

"You know, our pastries are buy one get one free this week," the cashier stated, giving Percy another smile. "Do you want to pick something else out?"

"Um sure, why not," Percy said. "I'll have a cinnamon roll also."

"Great choice," the cashier said, ringing up Percy's order. "And a name for the order?"

"Percy," he said as he handed her the cash.

"I like that name," the cashier said, giving Percy his change. Percy gave her an awkward smile as he moved off to the side to wait for his order.

Percy drank his coffee and ate his muffin as he made his way to the Chase apartment, arriving right on time at nine o'clock exactly. He knocked on the door, and Annabeth answered, wearing black Nike shorts and a purple athletic tank top, her black sports bra poking out under the top. Her blonde curls were pulled back into a pony tail, and her natural beauty once again struck Percy.

"I brought you a cinnamon roll," he said, handing her the bag and walking past her into the apartment, all before she could say hello.

"You're late," Annabeth said, closing the front door.

"I'm not late," Percy argued, "I'm right on time." He smirked at her, going into the laundry room to get the leashes. The dogs followed him, already catching on that this guy was here to walk them.

Annabeth pulled out the cinnamon roll as Percy went to get the leashes, wondering why he brought her something.

"Bobby, Matthew, are you guys ready to go?" Annabeth said to her brothers sitting on the couch.

"Yeah," Bobby said, "let me go get a ball." He jumped off the couch and ran to the twins' shared room, and Matthew walked over to where Annabeth was eating her cinnamon roll on the kitchen counter.

"Ooh, can I have some?" Matthew said.

"Sure," Annabeth tore him off a piece as Percy rounded the corner. He held the leashes in one hand. Percy had a strong, obvious control over the large dogs. Annabeth could not help but take notice of how handsome his face was and how good he looked with the dogs.

"Let's go!" Bobby yelled, running into the room with a soccer ball in hand.

"Am I going to have company?" Percy asked Annabeth, raising an eyebrow.

"No, Annabeth is going to play soccer with us!" Matthew answered. Percy chuckled and the group left the apartment, heading to Central Park. Upon their arrival, Percy began his walk with the dogs, and Annabeth and her brothers began talking about their game.

"Let's play twins agains Annabeth!" Matthew suggested.

"Yeah!" Bobby agreed. Annabeth laughed.

"That doesn't seem very fair, seeing as you two are soccer stars," she protested. She wanted to also mention the fact that she was terrible at soccer, but Annabeth would never admit that out loud.

"Too bad, so sad," Bobby taunted. They set the boundaries for the goals and began their game.

Percy could see them from a distance from where he was with the dogs. He laughed to himself as Annabeth attempted to kick the ball, only to have Matthew steal it away from her, causing Annabeth's powerful kick to hit nothing but the air. As he watched Annabeth play with her brothers, he felt his stomach turn a little bit. _What are you doing, Percy?_ He scolded himself. _You just broke up with Rachel, you can't already have another crush._ _Unless you never really cared for Rachel…_ Percy's thoughts were conflicting themselves. _But if I never really cared for her, then what was it? Lust? But we never even_ did _anything. But maybe that's what I wanted, and I just didn't know it…_ Percy stopped in his tracks as these thoughts entered his head. The dogs pulled on the leashes, urging Percy to keep walking. He looked at them.

"What do you think, guys?" he asked the dogs as he continued walking. " _Was_ it just lust with Rachel?" Molly looked back at him and woofed. Percy chuckled and shook his head.

Annabeth took a sip out of her water bottle. The twins had just called a timeout, no doubtably discussing the next move they would use against her. The eight-year-olds were already beating Annabeth by twelve points. They were playing to fifteen, and the twins only needed on more goal.

"Ready!" Bobby called to her. Annabeth sighed and jogged over to the twins. Matthew threw in the ball, and the play commenced. Annabeth went for the ball, kicking it towards her goal. She was about to score when Bobby stole the ball and passed it to Matthew. Annabeth ran, but it was too late. Matthew slid as he kicked the winning goal. He and Bobby cheered as Annabeth looked at them with an annoyed expression.

"Did you guys win?" Percy asked the twins as he came over with the dogs.

"Yeah we did!" Bobby answered, cheering.

"Alright!" Percy said, giving them both high fives. "So what's it like to loose to little boys?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"We aren't little! We're eight!" Matthew snapped, crossing his arms. Percy laughed.

"You're right, buddy, I was mistaken."

"And," Annabeth chimed in, "these two are incredibly skilled. They'd kick your butt in two minutes."

"Oh really?" Percy challenged. "Well I bet _I_ could kick _their_ butts in two minutes." Percy was more of a swimming guy, he did have a scholarship for his skills after all, but he could play soccer pretty well, too, when he wanted to.

"Do you want to play?" Bobby asked, hopeful. The twins were quite taken with Percy, enjoying his company.

"Sure," Percy answered, "let's do this." Percy tied the dogs' leashed to a nearby tree.

"Someone has to be on a team with Annabeth." Matthew announced, remembering his sister's presence.

"It's not such a disadvantage to have me on your team!" Annabeth defended herself, but the three boys simply looked at her.

"I'll take her," Percy volunteered. The game started smoothly. The first team to score ten points would win. Bobby and Matthew had the ball first, going for a goal, but Percy skillfully blocked it, passing the ball to Annabeth. Annabeth ran the ball down the makeshift field and passed it back to Percy who scored the first goal of the game. The lead did not last long, however. The twins quickly got the ball back and ran straight down the field to score the next goal, tying the game. The game went back and forth for a while, until it was tied again at nine to nine. Bobby had the ball, and he attempted to pass it to Matthew. Percy and Annabeth both went for the unclaimed ball at the same time, running straight into each other. Annabeth landed on her back, Percy flopping on top of her with an _oomph._

"Ow," Annabeth breathed out, turning her face to look at Percy on top of her. His beautiful green eyes were staring right back at her, his lips mere inches away from hers. As she stared into his eyes, his body on top of her, she was not even thinking about how his weight was making it difficult for her to breath. The butterflies in her stomach forced her to focus on the way he was looking back at her and the fact that she could feel his lean muscles against her.

As Percy landed on Annabeth, he saw her eyes close, braced for impact. As she turned her head to look at him, opening her shining gray eyes, Percy's heart stopped. Percy was suddenly keenly aware of every part of her body that was touching him. He was aware of her face so close to his that he could feel her breath on his face. He was aware of how small her body was in comparison to his. He was aware of how different the feeling in his stomach was from what he had felt with Rachel. _It was definitely lust._ Percy decided, concluding the argument he had had with himself earlier. Percy even thought he saw something in Annabeth's eyes that may mean she was having the same feelings about him, too. Percy suddenly realized that he was still on top of her and that he was not supporting any of his weight on his own. He quickly pushed himself onto his knees, his right knee landing between Annabeth's legs, and helped her up. As their hands touched for the first time, they both felt something stirring on the inside, something neither had ever felt before. Something different, something special.

"Are you okay?" Percy asked, concern evident in his voice, his eyebrows furrowed. Annabeth brushed herself off.

"Yeah, I'm good, you?" She tried not to let the way he was effecting her show in her voice.

"I'm fine, you kinda broke my fall there," Percy said with a laugh. Annabeth laughed with him. "Really though, are you okay?" Percy prodded. "Did you hit your head?" Percy wanted to reach out and feel the back of her head himself, but he held himself back.

"No, I think I landed bottom first. I may have a few bruises, but I'll be okay." She smiled at him and Percy's heart did something funny.

Matthew and Bobby ran over to them.

"You're losers!" They both yelled, laughing and making faces at Percy and Annabeth. Annabeth sneered at them.

"That hardly counts as a fair win," she told them.

"A win is a win," Bobby said with a shrug. Shaking his head, Percy untied the dogs from the tree, and the four walked back to the Chases' apartment. Walking through the front door into the cool, clean apartment, Annabeth helped Percy with the leashes, as the dogs plopped down on the floor, panting, both worn out from their exciting time outside.

"I'll see you guys tomorrow," Percy said to the twins.

"Don't be late," Annabeth warned, giving a slight smile as Percy opened the front door.

"Wouldn't dream of it." Percy replied, giving a smile of his own before walking out.

* * *

 **Hey guys! I'm really enjoying writing this story, and I would _love_ to know how you guys are enjoying reading it, so please let me know! I would love to hear your thoughts!**


	4. Chapter 4

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

* * *

As the next couple of weeks went by, Percy become a huge role model to Bobby and Matthew; Frederick and Susan became more and more satisfied with his service, giving Percy a key of his own so he could walk on days no one was home; and Annabeth grew fonder of the dog walker than she would care to admit, as did the dog walker grow fond of her. Percy continued to bring Annabeth breakfast pastries, even after the buy one get one deal ended, and there had been more than a few occasions on which Percy would hang around after his walk, maybe for just one episode of whatever show Annabeth was watching, or on which Annabeth happened to feel like going for a stroll at the precise time Percy was ready with the dogs.

"Hey, guys!" Annabeth heard Percy's voice as she rolled over in bed, rubbing her eyes. The dogs barked wildly in response, and Annabeth could hear the sounds of them jumping up and down. "Where is everyone?" Percy asked the dogs. Annabeth, of course, could have answered that question better than the dogs: the twins had spent the night at a friend's, and Frederick and Susan both would have left for work hours ago. However, the dogs answered by barking some more, and she heard the barking grow louder until there was wining outside of her door. She then saw her door open slightly, Percy tentatively poking his head in.

The first time Percy saw Annabeth's room, the one thing that struck him was how youthful it was. The room did not seem to quite match Annabeth's mature and intriguing personality. The walls were painted a soft, power yellow, offsetting the dark wood that matched the rest of the apartment. The three windows let in the bright sunlight, reflecting off of the white bookshelf, packed with large books about architecture and literature, that matched perfectly with the loft bed, crowded and messy desk underneath, taking advantage of every amount of space possible. Annabeth's comforter was a soft green, complimenting the yellow on the walls and the powder blue pillows.

"Good morning, sleepy head," Percy greeted her, enjoying the sight of Annabeth's tousled hair and sleepy eyes. "Shouldn't you be out of bed by now?"

"Go away," Annabeth threw a pillow at him, which Percy adeptly caught with a chuckle.

"I brought you a muffin," he tried again. Annabeth flopped onto her back with a sigh.

"Well in that case, I absolutely _must_ get out of the warmth and safety of my hovel." Annabeth threw and arm over her eyes. Percy laughed, a loud and boisterous laugh.

"Hovel? Come on, it's a _chocolate chip_ muffin," Percy taunted, holding up the paper bag.

"Chocolate chip, you say?" Annabeth looked at Percy out of the corner of her eye.

"Mmmhm," Percy grinned, nodding his head.

"Well. I guess it's time to get out of bed." Annabeth sat up as she came to her conclusion. Percy gave her a big, triumphant smile.

"M'lady," Percy joked as Annabeth got out of bed, offering her his arm, which she took with a smile.

"Thank you, kind sir," Annabeth joked back as the two journeyed into the kitchen. Annabeth took a seat at the kitchen table, eating her muffin, as Percy got the dogs ready to go.

"See you late, Annabeth," Percy said as he went out the front door.

"Bye, Percy, thanks for the muffin," Annabeth replied. Percy shot her a smile as he closed the door. Annabeth sighed. She did not know what it was about Percy that just made her heart flutter. She had had crushes before, of course, but this boy was different.

As Annabeth finished her muffin, her cell phone rang. Looking down, she saw her friend Piper's face lighting up the screen.

"Hey, Pipes," Annabeth answered, throwing away the wrapper from her muffin.

"Annabeth I am bored out of my _mind_ over here. I'm coming over." Annabeth laughed at Piper's melodrama. Piper was one of Annabeth's best friends, and she came over uninvited fairly often.

"Alright then, see you soon," Annabeth hung up the phone, admittedly bored herself. About a half hour later, there was a knock at the door, and Annabeth was greeted by a girl with a tan complexion and chestnut hair to match. She was slightly taller than Annabeth, and the color of her eyes seemed to change with the light every time she moved. Piper was wearing denim shorts and a suede top with scalloped sleeves, complimenting her braided hair and lace up gladiator sandals.

"Piper!" Annabeth greeted as she let her in the apartment.

"Annabeth, you're still in your pajamas," Piper commented with a laugh.

"Yeah, I know, I slept in today, sue me," Annabeth defended.

"So what's new?" Piper asked as the two sat on the couch and turned on the television.

"Really, not much," Annabeth answered, choosing not to tell Piper about the new dog walker. However, just at that moment, Percy barged in with the dogs, and Annabeth noted what an incredibly Percy thing that was to do.

" _That's_ new," Piper muttered, looking at Percy over her shoulder.

"Annabeth, you wouldn't believe what Charlie did today!" Percy yelled from the laundry room, putting the leashes away.

"Who is that?" Piper asked excitedly, looking at Annabeth.

"Hush, he's just the dog walker," Annabeth brushed her off.

"That is _quite_ the dog walker," Piper commented as Percy came into the room and sat down on one of the Louis XVI armchairs.

"Annabeth, I didn't know you had friends!" Percy jeered as Annabeth rolled her eyes. "I'm Percy by the way." He introduced himself to Piper.

"Piper," she replied.

"So anyway," Percy returned his attention to Annabeth, "there was this squirrel and Charlie just decided to go after it. Naturally Molly couldn't have cared less about the squirrel, but it was everything I could do to hold Charlie back. I've never seen him try to run like that! He's seen squirrels before!" Annabeth laughed at how excited Percy was.

"I guess it was just a really special squirrel," she suggested.

"I guess," Percy agreed, standing up. "Well I'm supposed to meet a friend in half an hour so I better get going."

"I didn't know you had friends!" Annabeth mocked, putting a mask of surprise on her face. Percy chuckled.

"Well played, see you tomorrow, Annabeth." His voice seemed to soften at the end of his sentence as he left the apartment.

"Nothing's new, huh?" Piper questioned as soon as Percy left.

"What? He's just a new dog walker," Annabeth assured.

"Like hell he's _just_ a new dog walker, you like him." Piper accused. Annabeth's face grew red.

"I don't," she denied.

"And what's better: he likes you too!" Piper did not even try to hide the excitement in her voice

"He doesn't, Piper," Annabeth shook her head. Piper looked at her like she was crazy.

"Annabeth, were you just in the same room that I was? You must be blind. I will say, you've got good taste though."

"He _is_ pretty attractive, isn't he," Annabeth said with a sheepish smile.

"That's the understatement of the century." Piper said with a laugh.

The two girls decided to go to Times Square to spend some time walking around and shopping for the rest of the day. They both enjoyed the sights and sounds of Times Square. Taxis honked, people yelled, and street performers entranced tourists. The huge LED screens broadcasted ads for Coca-Cola, _The New York Times_ , and the many Broadway shows that were currently playing. Annabeth and Piper spent hours people watching and going into the many stores, neither buying anything on this particular excursion, but enjoying looking at and, in many cases, making fun of the merchandise. The two laughed and enjoying hanging out together all day, and soon the sun was setting, and both girls were starving.

"Pizza?" Piper suggested, looking at Annabeth.

"Sounds great," Annabeth agreed. The two began walking towards their favorite pizza parlor in the area when they heard a voice from behind.

"Annabeth?" They turned to see Percy a few strides behind them with a blonde around the same height as Percy walking with him. Annabeth and Piper moved to the side of the sidewalk as Percy and his friend caught up with them.

"Hey, Percy, what a coincidence seeing you here," Annabeth greeted, "who's your friend?"

"Annabeth, Piper," Percy impressed himself at remembering the brunette's name from earlier, "this is Jason. Jason, Annabeth and Piper."

"Nice to meet you," Jason greeted, offering his hand to each the girls.

"So what are you guys up to?" Percy asked.

"We were just about to go get some pizza," Annabeth answered, giving him a smile.

"Hmm, pizza. That sounds pretty good to me, what do you think, Jason?" Percy turned to his friend.

"Sounds good to me," Jason replied.

"Mind if we join you?" Percy asked, giving Annabeth a slight smirk.

"Not at all," Annabeth answered, looking at Piper for approval. Piper, convinced that Percy and Annabeth were made for each other, and not minding the view of Percy's friend, gave Annabeth an enthusiastic nod.

"Miss me?" Percy asked Annabeth as the four began to stroll towards the pizza parlor. Annabeth looked up at him from the corner of her eye.

"You wish," she scoffed at him, walking a little faster to catch up with Piper and Jason as they approached the pizza parlor. The parlor was 50's themed with black and white checked, tile floor, red booths, and chrome tables. The group sat down at a booth, Jason sliding in next to Piper, forcing Annabeth to take the seat next to Percy. Percy smiled down at her as he opened his menu.

"So do you guys want to get a couple of larges to share? Or we can all just get personals. What do you think?" Piper asked, looking around the table.

"I think a couple of larges sounds like a good idea," Jason suggested. "Maybe one classic pepperoni and one meat lovers?"

"I'm actually a vegetarian," Piper said with a tentative smile, "let's just add one cheese and call it a day. You can never have too much pizza anyway."

"Sounds like a plan," Percy said as the waiter walked up to the table. He was a short, fifteen year old boy with orange hair and unfortunate acne.

"Hi, my name is Duncan, and I'll be taking care of you this evening. Can I start you off with something to drink?" he asked with a bored look on his face. Jason motioned for Piper to order first.

"I'll have a Dr. Pepper," she ordered, giving Duncan a smile.

"I'll have iced tea, please," Annabeth ordered next.

"I'll take a Coke," Percy said.

"Coke for me, too, and I think we're ready to order," Jason told Duncan.

"Okay go ahead, then," Duncan's voice cracked on the last word and his face went slightly red.

"Alright," Percy stared, "we're going to take a large meat lovers, a large pepperoni, and a large cheese, and go ahead and bring a basket of bread sticks, too."

"That'll be right up." Duncan said as he left to put the order in.

"So how do you two know each other?" Annabeth asked Jason and Percy.

"We were at NYU together this year," Jason answered.

"You go to NYU?" Annabeth turned to Percy. The topic of school had never come up in their brief chats and interactions.

"Just finished my freshman year," Percy said proudly.

"What's your major?" Annabeth asked, interest evident in her eyes.

"Marine biology," Percy answered with a smile.

"Suits you," Annabeth commented.

"What does that mean?" Percy inquired with a laugh.

"What about you, Jason?" Piper interrupted.

"Aerospace engineering," Jason answered, "planes and rockets and things."

"That sounds fun," Piper said.

"Yeah, it's a blast," Jason grinned proudly at his pun as the table broke out in fake laughter. "But what about you guys, where do you go? I haven't seen either of you around NYU."

"Piper and I actually just graduated," Annabeth answered, "I'll be going to Columbia in the fall."

"Columbia?" Percy asked, obviously impressed. Annabeth nodded with a smile. "Wow." Percy mumbled. This girl just got better and better, never ceasing to amaze him.

"Well, I'm no Annabeth," Piper said, "so I'll just be going to Furman University."

"Where's that?" Jason asked.

"South Carolina, I'm actually really looking forward to FU." Piper stated, smiling.

"FU?" Percy asked, eyebrow raised. "Do people really say that?"

"Oh yes," Piper assured. "They chant it at football games. It's a cheer and a jeer all at the same time." The table laughed.

"How convenient," Jason stated through his laughter. The pizza soon arrived and the four hungry students stuffed their faces, leaving hardly any left overs.

"That was amazing," Percy said, casually throwing his arm over the back of the booth. Annabeth tried to ignore the fact that his arm hair was tickling the back of her neck.

"Sure was," Piper agreed as Duncan brought the check.

"No, we don't split the check, you'll just have to work it out." He said with a sigh. The bill came out to forty-three dollars and forty-six cents.

"If we all put in thirteen dollars that will cover the cost plus tip," Annabeth said.

"Sure," Jason said, putting in his thirteen dollars. Piper followed suit, and Annabeth began pulling out her wallet. As she did so, however, Percy gently pushed her hand away under the table, casually tossing twenty-six dollars in, without Jason or Piper noticing. Annabeth looked up at him, but did not say anything, and they all got up to leave, the sun now long gone.

"Alright, well, I should get home," Piper said. "This was fun." She gave them each a hug and began walking home, and Jason soon followed.

"Let me walk you home," Percy said to Annabeth.

"It's really not that far," Annabeth said, shaking her head.

"Come on, we wouldn't want anything to happen to you, now would we?" Percy said, beginning to walk towards Annabeth's home. Annabeth smiled.

"I guess not." She said.

"So, Columbia, huh? You never told me you were super smart," Percy looked down at her, smiling. Annabeth laughed.

"I just worked really hard," she denied.

"I bet your head had a little something to do with it," Percy insisted. "What are you going to study?"

"Architecture," Annabeth answered without any hint of a doubt.

"You'll make a great architect," Percy told her. Annabeth smiled.

"Thanks," she said. They walked in comfortable silence for a while, simply enjoying being around each other. When they arrived at Annabeth's large, stone apartment building, Percy turned towards Annabeth, making them just inches apart. Annabeth's breath hitched, and a slight rain began to fall.

"Annabeth," Percy said.

"Yes?"

"Could we, uh," Percy looked down at his feet, then looked Annabeth straight in the eyes, "could we do this again sometime? But without Jason and Piper. Just the two of us?" Annabeth smiled.

"Like a date?" She teased.

"Yes," he replied, "like a date. Annabeth, will you go on a date with me?" Percy's voice was filled with hope and his eyes shone with vulnerability.

"Yes," Annabeth replied, grinning. They looked at each other, both smiling, both wet from the rain, before Annabeth turned and walked into her building.

* * *

 **As always, thanks so much for reading, and please let me know what you think in a review :).**


	5. Chapter 5

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

* * *

Annabeth made herself a cup of coffee, still wearing the leggings and oversized Coca-Cola shirt she had slept in. As she sat down at the table, ready to enjoy the quiet morning as she sipped her coffee, the twins ran into the room, disturbing any peace there may have been.

"Annabeth, will you make us breakfast?" Bobby asked, siting in the chair next to her.

"Please?" Matthew added, throwing his arms around her neck. Annabeth groaned.

"Please?" They asked again, together, drawing out the word and using the cutest baby voices they could muster up. Annabeth rolled her eyes, but nonetheless, got up out of her chair. The twins cheered at their victory and followed Annabeth to the fridge.

"What do you guys want?" She asked, looking at the contents of the refrigerator.

"Eggs," Matthew requested.

"And bacon," Bobby finished. Annabeth nodded her head as she took several eggs out of the carton, along with an unopened pack of bacon. Annabeth pulled out two pans from the cabinet, coated one with butter, and began cracking eggs. She placed the bacon in rows on the second, and the scent filled the apartment as the sizzling grew louder. Annabeth scrambled the eggs, adding the perfect amount of salt and pepper, as the front door opened and Percy sauntered in.

"I smell bacon!" He sing-songed as he walked over to where the twins and Annabeth were watching the stove.

"Percy!" The twins yelled in unison, each giving him a hug around his hips.

"Hey guys," Percy greeted, "what's cookin' good lookin'?" Percy turned his attention to Annabeth, making the twins laugh. She glared at him over her shoulder.

"Bacon and eggs, don't you have eyes?" She teased with a smile. "Do you want some?"

"Well," Percy said, "since you offered." He smirked at her. "I brought you a chocolate croissant, by the way," Percy informed, placing the paper bag on the counter.

"Ooh, the perfect addition." Annabeth said, scooping the scrambled eggs into a big bowl. She then placed the bacon onto a plate, sopping up the grease with a paper towel. The twins, and Percy, lined up with plates in their hands and helped themselves, bringing their food to the table. Annabeth followed, adding the croissant to her plate of bacon and eggs. She sat down next to Percy, facing both of the twins. Smelling the food, Molly and Charlie sat down next to the table, looking up at their feasting owners with big eyes.

"Annabeth can I give Molly some bacon?" Bobby asked, already breaking off a piece.

"If you're going to give her something, give her eggs instead of bacon," Annabeth instructed. Bobby nodded and did just that, making Charlie whine in protest.

"I got you, buddy," Percy assured Charlie, giving him a mouthful of his eggs. Finishing quickly, Percy got up to take his plate to the sink, the twins following him closely. Annabeth helped the twins put their dishes in the dishwasher as Percy got the dogs on their leashes, belly full, and ready for his daily walk.

"I'll be back," he called as he left with Molly and Charlie.

"So what do you guys want to do today?" Annabeth asked the twins.

"Let's play board games!" Matthew said excitedly. The twins adored board games. Annabeth never understood why they loved them so much, but she enjoyed playing with them, so she almost always obliged when they asked her to play with them.

"Alright," she agreed, "what do you want to play?"

"Life! Let's play life," Bobby suggested. Annabeth got the game out of the closet, and the twins helped set everything up. Annabeth was always the banker, naturally, and the twins always fought over who got the red car. Matthew won this time around, claiming that Bobby got to use the red car last time, and the game began. Bobby and Annabeth both started at college, while Matthew opted to start with a career, drawing the Mechanic card. As Annabeth drew the Lawyer card, she complained loudly about how there was no card for architects, going on and on about why there _should_ be an architect card as Bobby and Matthew both rolled their eyes and ignored her until she was done. The game went on, and after a while, Frederick came through the door.

"Dad!" The twins yelled in unison, running to give their dad a hug.

"Dad, what are you doing home?" Annabeth greeted, standing up from her spot on the floor next to the game board.

"Well, I thought I'd just come home for lunch today, see my kiddos." Frederick answered, giving them all a smile. "What do you kids have going on? Can I fix you something for lunch?"

"I'm actually not really hungry," Annabeth answered. "We had a big breakfast kinda late." The twins nodded in agreement.

"Well that's perfectly alright, I'll bring my lunch to the couch and watch your game," Frederick decided.

"But mom says no eating on the couch!" Bobby protested.

"Then I guess it's just going to have to be our little secret," Frederick replied, holding a finger up to his lips. Frederick fixed himself a sandwich and sat down on the couch, watching his three children play The Game of Life together. Frederick smiled to himself as the door opened and the sound of panting dogs filled the apartment.

"Percy," Frederick said as he stood up and shook Percy's free hand.

"Mr. Chase, good to see you again," Percy replied, giving Frederick's hand a firm shake.

"Likewise, young man. Good walk?" Frederick accompanied Percy as he took the dogs' leashed off and went to put them away.

"Oh, great walk, sir." Percy replied with a smile.

"The dogs are really enjoying them. They're exhausted all day once they get back from their walk." Frederick laughed, and Percy chuckled with him.

"Yes, sir," he said as the two walked back into the living room. "Well, I'll just be going then. Bye, Annabeth. Bobby, Matthew." Percy nodded his head to the twins as he began to make his way to the door.

"Don't rush!" Frederick said. "Are you hungry? I'm about to get going, but we have plenty of food if you want some lunch. Just help yourself." Percy chuckled.

"Thank you, I think I may just take you up on that." Percy replied.

"Please do," Frederick said, "I do need to get going back to work, though. Have a great day kids, I love you guys." The twins gave their dad a hug and Annabeth waved as he walked out the door. Meanwhile, Percy opened the fridge and began looking around. He pulled out an apple and took a bite.

"Let's take a break from the game, guys," Annabeth told the twins, "I'm going to keep Percy company over there." Without waiting for their response, Annabeth got up and walked over to Percy.

"So my dad really likes you," she said, pushing herself onto the counter, making her slightly taller than Percy.

"I noticed," Percy said with a wink. "I think his daughter does too." Annabeth's eyes bulged at his boldness.

"Oh yeah?" Annabeth questioned, raising an eyebrow at him. Percy took a bite of his apple, nodding.

"Oh yeah." He confirmed.

"And how does the dog walker feel about his boss's daughter?" Annabeth tilter her head to the side a little bit.

"She's alright," Percy said with a laugh. Annabeth hit him on the arm. "I'm joking. He really likes her, too." Percy gave Annabeth a smile and took another bite of his apple. "He's also wondering if she would like to go to dinner with him tomorrow night?" Percy looked at the ground as he said this.

"She would love to," Annabeth replied. Percy looked up.

"Really?" Percy asked, a smile creeping onto his face.

"Percy, I already told you I'd go on a date with you." Annabeth said, laughing at him.

"Stop laughing at me, I was afraid you were just being nice," Percy said, laughing himself.

"What if I'm just being nice now?" Annabeth joked. Percy stopped laughing and looked at her.

"That would be incredibly cruel." He stated with a straight face. Annabeth ruffled his hair as she jumped down from the counter.

"I'm just messing with you. Also you kinda stink," she laughed.

"I just spent an hour walking your dogs, what do you expect!" Percy defended, giving her a little nudge in the back. Percy tossed his apple core in the trash. "I need to get going. I promised my mom I'd do the dishes and clean the counters and all that."

"Bye, Percy," Annabeth replied.

"Bye, Annabeth," Percy smiled at her as he opened the front door and walked out. Annabeth sighed.

"Annabeth?" Bobby said, startling her.

"Yeah?"

"Do you like Percy?" The innocence in Bobby's voice made Annabeth smile.

"Yeah, I really do." She looked at Bobby and smiled. "So, you wanna finish that game?"

"Yes!" Annabeth and Bobby went back over to where Matthew was waiting and continued their game.

When Percy walked into his apartment, grinning ear to ear, his mom as already home for the day.

"Hey, Perce, what are you smiling about?" She questioned.

"Nothing, mom." Percy denied, starting his job of doing the dishes.

"It's a girl isn't it." Sally stated, and the blush that crept onto her son's face was all she needed to know. "So who is it? Are you over Rachel? This isn't a rebound is it?" Sally questioned Percy, taking a seat at the table.

"No, mom, this is absolutely not a rebound. And it's been like a month since Rachel, she wasn't very hard to get over." Percy answered, annoyed that his mom would even think he would go for a rebound.

"So I guess you didn't have the feelings for Rachel that you thought you did?" Sally asked.

"If I'm being perfectly honest with you, Mom, Rachel showed me the difference between love and lust. And I'm glad I was able to learn that because now I _know_ that what I'm feeling for Annabeth is not just lust." Percy stated with confidence, not making eye contact with his mother.

"Annabeth?" Sally asked. "Is that her name? It's a lovely name." Percy smiled.

"It is isn't it?" He looked at his mom with a sheepish smile.

"And how did you meet her?" Sally asked.

"She's the Chases' daughter," Percy answered.

"Oh," Sally said, "so you've already spent some time with this girl."

"Yeah. I'm taking her to dinner tomorrow night. It's our first real date." Percy said, smiling. Sally got up and put her arm around her son, reaching up to give him a kiss on the cheek.

"I really hope this goes well for you, Percy," she said, rubbing his back.

"I do, too, Mom," Percy replied, "there's really something special about her. She's beautiful. She's smart. Conversation between us just seems to happen, there's no work involved."

"How old is she?" Sally asked.

"She's a year younger than I am," Percy answered. Sally nodded.

"Well, son, I can't wait to meet her," Sally gave Percy a huge grin.

"No time soon, Mom," Percy said with a laugh.

"We'll see," Sally left the kitchen and Percy finished the dishes, thinking about Annabeth and how ridiculously excited he was for the next night.

* * *

 **I was kind of disappointed that the last chapter didn't get as much of a response as the three before it, so I really hope you guys aren't losing interest :/**

 **Anyway, thanks as always, and please leave a review/favorite/follow! :)**


	6. Chapter 6

_I own nothing related to Percy Jackson or any other franchise mentioned in this story in any way._

* * *

"Good morning, Percy," Frederick greeted as Percy walked into the apartment.

"Oh, good morning, sir," Percy replied, not used to Frederick being home so late.

"Percy!" Bobby ran into the room, Matthew not far behind, and joined Percy and Frederick in the kitchen.

"The twins have a birthday party this morning that I have to take them to," Frederick explained, answering Percy's question of why he was still home. "What do you have there?" Frederick asked Percy, referring to the brown paper bag Percy was holding that contained a pumpkin muffin for Annabeth.

"Oh, just a muffin," Percy blushed, not wanting to be the one to tell Annabeth's father that there was something going on between the two of them.

"It's for Annabeth," Matthew stated with a coy smile. Percy blushed harder.

"For Annabeth, huh?" Frederick asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Um, yes sir," Percy said with a sheepish smile. Frederick decided to have pity on Percy, for now, and let the subject drop.

"Well, boys, let's get going," he said to the twins, and the three promptly left the apartment. Percy sighed and looked at the dogs, both laying lazily in the living room.

"Are you guys ready to go?" he asked them. Molly looked at him before turning her head the other direction. Percy chucked and shook his head. He walked the short distance down the hall and peeked his head in Annabeth's room. She was sleeping soundly, blonde curls spread all over her pillow. Percy smiled. He grabbed a sticky note off of her desk.

 _Can't wait for tonight. I'll pick you up at six :)_

He placed the sticky note on the muffin bag and left it on Annabeth's desk for her before going across the hall to get the dogs' leashes.

When Annabeth woke up, she got out of bed and saw the muffin bag waiting for her on her desk. She read the note and smiled. The dogs were barking, which meant that Percy had already left, but Annabeth was not too upset that she missed him, seeing as she would see him tonight anyway. She strolled into the kitchen and called Piper on the landline as her muffin heated up.

"Hey!" Piper answered.

"Hey, Pipes, so I have something to tell you." Annabeth took a bite of her muffin.

"Oh?" Piper asked. "You know what, I have some news, too. But you first."

"Okay, so you remember Percy?"

"The incredibly hot dog walker? Yes, I remember him," Piper answered slyly.

"So, we have a date tonight," Annabeth's excitement was apparent in her voice as she took another bite of muffin.

"What! Annabeth, that's great!"

"Yeah, I'm pretty excited. So what about you?"

"Well, remember the hot dog walker's hot friend?" Annabeth could hear the smile in Piper's voice.

"Of course," Annabeth replied around her muffin.

"Well _we_ went out a couple of days ago," Piper informed Annabeth. Annabeth's eyes widened.

"What!" she exclaimed. "And you didn't tell me?"

"I know, I know. I just figured Percy would be asking you out soon and I didn't want to mess up your rhythm by putting any pressure or anything on the situation," Piper explained carefully.

"It's fine," Annabeth sighed dramatically, "I don't know why I even care."

"Oh shut up. So when is Percy picking you up?"

"Six,"

"That's only in, like, seven and a half hours! Do you know what you're going to wear?" Piper seemed panicked.

"No, I don't even know where we're going. Piper, I have more than enough time, calm down," Annabeth assured.

"What do you mean? He didn't tell you where you were going?" Annabeth furrowed her eyebrows.

"No," she answered, "it's not a big deal. I know we're going to dinner."

"Boys are so inconsiderate. How are we supposed to dress you if we don't know where you're going? It could be casual, or fancy, or somewhere in between. Hell, you could be getting fast food, in which case, you don't want to show up wearing a dress or a skirt!" Panic was sneaking back into Piper's voice.

"Piper, I'll be fine. I'll just wear something versatile," Annabeth replied as she threw away her muffin trash, taking care to not throw away Percy's sticky note.

"Annabeth."

"Piper."

"Don't you want your outfit to be careful thought out specially for the situation?"

"I really don't think it's that big of a deal."

"Okay, Annabeth, why don't you just text him and ask where you're going and then we can continue this conversation."

"Whatever," Annabeth complied as she rolled her eyes. It was not until she reached for her phone across the counter and opened her messaging app that she realized that she did not have Percy's phone number. She pursed her lips. _How can this be?_ She thought. It seemed almost silly that after all this time, she and Percy had not simply thought to exchange phone numbers. "Piper," Annabeth picked up the bulky home phone to tell Piper the news, bracing herself for a thorough scolding.

"Did he reply?" Piper answered eagerly.

"Well," Annabeth began with a slight chuckle, "you won't believe this, Piper. It seems as though me and Percy, uh, Percy and I, that is, have yet to exchange the numbers through which to contact one another."

"You don't have his phone number." Piper stated plainly.

"That seems to be the case."

"Annabeth, how can you not have his phone number. You two have been flirting all summer! Not even when we all got pizza? Annabeth, come on," Piper said exasperatedly.

"I know, I guess we just never thought about it. I mean, we see each other every day."

"Yeah, whatever," Piper said, and Annabeth could all but see her roll her eyes.

"Okay, Piper, well I better go start finding a very versatile outfit," Annabeth said with a smile.

"Good luck, tell me how everything goes."

"Will do." Annabeth hung up the phone and went to go read. Finding an outfit worthy of Piper's approval could wait.

Paul tossed Percy the keys to the Prius as Percy bid him and Sally goodbye for the evening.

"You look very handsome," Sally said, kissing Percy on the cheek.

"Thanks, mom," he replied.

"Remember, Perce, nothing you wouldn't want your mom and I to witness in my car," Paul said with a wink. Percy's face turned slightly pink.

"Right," he said awkwardly, "okay, bye then, see you guys later." Percy waved as he left the apartment. He felt strange driving the route he usually walked to the Chase apartment, but he mainly felt excited. And nervous. What if he did something stupid? Or what if he embarrasses himself? Percy shook his head. _Stay calm_. He told himself as he parked his car and headed into the large, stone apartment building.

"You're dressed nice," Susan, chopping onions, observed as Annabeth walked out of her room. "What's the occasion?"

"I have a date," Annabeth replied, trying to sound casual. Susan raised an eyebrow.

"With whom, may I ask?"

"You remember Percy," Annabeth stated, "the dog walker." Now both of Susan's eyebrows raised, but before she could say anything, the doorbell rang. "That'll be him," Annabeth smiled at Susan as she went to get the door.

"Have fun, don't do anything stupid," Susan said as Annabeth walked away.

Annabeth opened the door to find Percy waiting. He wore a blue button down with the sleeves rolled up slightly, tucked into light khaki shorts. Annabeth mentally applauded him as she observed that the brown leather of his belt matched his shoes, and mentally applauded herself on guesses the dress code correctly. She was surprised at how attractive it was to see him in something other than exercise clothes, not, at all, that those were unattractive. His shirt was tight enough to subtly hint at his strong arms underneath, but not so tight that it looked at though if he was not careful, a button might pop right off.

Likewise, Percy noted that while Annabeth was no doubtably beautiful when she rolled out of bed in her pajamas, she was absolutely stunning when she put on real clothes and looked as though she had put on understated makeup. Annabeth's black and white polka dotted shorts were short enough to allow Percy a nice view of her smooth and tanned thighs, but long enough that Frederick would not be mortified if Annabeth ran into some of his friends. Annabeth wore a plain, chiffon, peach-colored top with cap sleeves, untucked, and had put on a white, floral necklace and simple, white earrings.

"You look great," Percy breathed when Annabeth answered the door.

"Likewise," she answered with a smile.

"Ready to go?" Percy jokingly offered her his arm, but she took it regardless, and the two walked out to the Prius. The gentleman that he is, Percy opened Annabeth's door for her as she got in the car. She fastened her seatbelt as Percy got into his own seat.

"So where are we going?" Annabeth asked as Percy pulled out into the busy New York traffic.

"You'll just have to see," Percy winked at her as Annabeth narrowed her eyes.

"You're really not going to tell me?" She asked skeptically.

"Nope." Percy grinned.

"How cliche." Annabeth rolled her eyes.

"I am not cliche," Percy defended, giving Annabeth a stern look as he stopped behind a long line of cars. Percy did not know why they were all stopped, however, seeing as the light was clearly green.

"Tell me then," Annabeth insisted.

"Fine, we're going to this really good Italian place. I forget what it's called and exactly where it is, but I know how to get there."

"You don't know where it is, but you know how to get there?" Annabeth asked as she raised an eyebrow at him. The line of cars finally started moving, and Percy began to let off the brake.

"That's right. Trust me, it'll be good," Percy said as he changed lanes, frustrated with the incompetent drivers in front of him.

"I trust you," Annabeth replied, her voice involuntarily bringing a serious meaning to the words, and Percy seemed to know that she was not just talking about the restaurant. They were quiet for a few moments until Percy reached over and grabbed Annabeth's hand.

"I trust you, too," he told her sincerely, "and we're here."

Percy pulled into the parking lot of a quaint Italian restaurant, getting out to get Annabeth's door.

"Giovanni's," Annabeth read the sign as she stepped out of the car. Percy took her hand and they walked in. The restaurant had a cozy, homey feel. The lights were dimmed and there were flickering candles on top of every white table cloth. Empty wine bottles decorated the tops of the walls like a unique form of crown molding, and framed photos of various people cluttered the walls.

"Jackson," Annabeth heard Percy tell the hostess, "we have a reservation." Annabeth suddenly noticed the concentration of people crowded near the door, all holding circular pagers with flashing red lights.

"Of course," the hostess said, "right this way." She smiled as she grabbed two menus, and Percy and Annabeth followed her to a black leather booth towards the back of the restaurant. "Sean will be right with you," she told them as they took their seats, placing a menu in front of each of them.

"First date worthy?" Percy asked, a twinkle in his eye.

"Eh, could be better," Annabeth replied sarcastically. "Could've been rose petals decorating our path from the front door to our table. Maybe a string quartet playing _Cannon in D_ in the background."

"Ha, ha," Percy answered as the waiter approached their table. He was tall, had sandy blonde hair, and looked as though he worked out maybe a tad too much. He grinned at them, revealing shockingly white teeth and introduced himself.

"Hi, my name is Sean, and I'll be taking care of you tonight. Is there anything I can get you started to drink besides water?" He turned to Annabeth in a friendly manner.

"I'd love a Coke," she answered.

"Certainly. And you, sir?" He shifted his gaze to Percy.

"I'll have the same, Coke, please," Percy ordered. Sean assured them that their drinks would be out shortly before politely walking away. They cracked open the menus and began examining the contents.

"Anything look good?" Percy asked.

" _Everything_ looks good," Annabeth answered, and Percy chuckled.

"Don't hold back," he told her.

"Oh, don't worry, I won't," Annabeth assured.

"So they have this really good fried cheese appetizer. It comes with marinara and it is _so good,_ " Percy informed, "will you eat some if I order it?"

"Absolutely," Annabeth answered as Sean approached with their Cokes and waters on a tray.

"Can I get you guys anything to start? Do you need a few minutes?" He asked as he placed the drinks in front of Percy and Annabeth.

"We're going to start with the fried mozzarella," Percy said, "and yeah, we'll need a few more minutes."

"Alright, I'll have that mozzarella right out," Sean smiled before walking away.

"Do you come here a lot?" Annabeth asked, observing Percy's knowledge of the menu.

"Not _a lot_ a lot," he answered, "I usually come here with my parents on birthdays and such."

"That's sweet," Annabeth commented, "so what do you usually get?"

"Well, what are you in the mood for? Are you a salad kind of girl?" Annabeth laughed at Percy's question.

"I'll eat salad, but I'd say I'm a carb kind of girl," she answered with a smile.

"I should've known. You _do_ eat a very carb packed pastry for breakfast every morning," Percy said, shaking his head as if mildly scolding Annabeth. She laughed.

"Hey, and whose fault is that?" she countered.

"Fair enough," Percy conceded. "Well if you're in the mood for some good carbs," he gave Annabeth a pointed look over his menu, "then you can't go wrong with the manicotti. Or if you want to throw some protein in there, the chicken parm is really good, too." Percy nodded as he examined the choices.

"Hmm," Annabeth said, appearing to be deep in thought, "those both sound really good. I think I'll go manicotti." She decided.

"Good, then I'll go chicken parm," Percy replied.

"Sounds like a plan," Annabeth smiled, and Sean came over with a large plate of fried mozzarella cheese, drizzled with marinara, and a large basket of various types of bread and butter.

"Are we ready to order?" He asked, looking from Percy to Annabeth.

"Yes," Annabeth replied, "I'm going to have the manicotti."

"Great choice, and you, sir?"

"I'll have the chicken parmesan, thanks," Percy ordered as he and Annabeth handed Sean their menus.

"I'll put that in right away," Sean nodded at them and walked away.

Percy was on cloud nine the entire night. Conversation did not lull for a second, the food was delicious, and the most beautiful girl in the world was sitting across from him. Annabeth tried some of Percy's chicken off his plate, and for some reason, Percy found something about Annabeth's slender arm reaching across the table to cut a bite of his dinner sexy. He could not figure out what exactly it was about this girl that had his head spinning, but he wanted to find out more. He had never met anyone quite like Annabeth before, and the feelings he was having scared him a little. Percy did not want to fall too hard too fast, but he could already feel himself on the track to do just that.

Annabeth, similarly, felt as though Percy could really be something special. She did not want to tell herself that he might be the one, especially not on the first date, but it was not like they had just met. This boy, the dog walker, whom she'd been getting to know all summer was making her heart feel things it had never felt before. She felt an unexplainable attraction where the simplest things, such as opening the door for her, made her heart soar and made her want to grab his face and _show_ him how she was feeling. He made her laugh, he was sweet, and Annabeth felt like something here was just _right._

After indulging in a shared piece of chocolate cake, topped with vanilla ice cream and hot fudge sauce, Annabeth and Percy walked back to the Prius, hand-in-hand. Annabeth leaned against the car as Percy reach around her to place his hand on the door handle. They looked at each other, and Percy just could not stand it anymore. He leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on Annabeth's lips, moving his hand from the car door to her waist and placing is other hand on her cheek. Annabeth responded by draping one arm around his neck, placing her other hand on his stomach. The kiss was sweet and gentle, and Percy pulled away to look into Annabeth's eyes. She stared back at him before pulling his head back down to her. This time, the kiss moved deeper, Percy slipping his tongue into Annabeth mouth, Annabeth responding eagerly. They remained in this embrace for a while, before Annabeth pulled back. Percy smiled broadly at her.

"Hey," he said. Annabeth smiled.

"Hey," she said back.

"I really like you, Annabeth, a lot," Percy whispered, his face turning serious.

"I really like you, too, Percy," Annabeth whispered back. They simply looked at each other, as though if either of them moved, something might break.

"Hey, Percy," Annabeth said with a smile, breaking the silence.

"Yeah?"

"We should exchange phone numbers."

* * *

 **Thanks so much for reading! Please favorite and leave a review and all that good stuff, it is greatly appreciated!**


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